Advantages

Reliability

Disadvantages

A great recovery from the disaster that was Vista. Apple have reason to put up a fight again.

After the atrocity that was Windows Vista, causing chaos in the business world as the less IT literate staff struggled to find the functions they required and the home users spent hours telling their PC yes, they really did mean to click that button and install a new game, Windows 7 has revived my faith in Microsoft's ability to create a great operating system.

Despite having a completely overhauled GUI from XP everything just seems to be where I expect it and if it isn't the handy search bar that is always visible if the start bar is open finds it almost instantly.

The main improvements I have enjoyed are the live previews of what a program is doing from the start bar - handy for checking on installation progress which concentrating on another program amongst other things, the option to "pin" programs to the start bar for one click access and the "jump lists" allowing me two click access to my favourite documents and websites.

Some of Vista's strict security features are still around but can easily be lowered or switched off to stop the constant nagging of "do you really want to do this?".

There are plenty of other improvements across the board but they are all well documented online. For me the point to get across is that finally the dated Windows XP GUI has received a huge overhaul to drag it into the 21st century and this time it's without the cost of an OS that nags you every time you try to do anything even slightly advanced past just running calculator or paint!

Comments

Advantages

Reliability

Disadvantages

A superb operating system has changed the way I use my computer dramatically

Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate (Windows 7)

I bought Windows 7 back around two months after its release date for an update to my Windows Vista machine. I bought the full software package for any installations on other machines rather than buying an update package. I purchased Windows 7 Ultimate for around £210 from amazon.co.uk. I also have windows 7 which was preinstalled on a computer which I purchased towards the end of last year from Dell, A Dell Studio XPS 700. I thought I wouldn't write about windows 7 until I had properly used and now nearly a year of using the same version of windows 7 on two of my main computers I thought I was pretty confident on what I was talking about.

Inside the Windows 7 Box...This is pretty obvious what is inside the box as it's only a piece of software so there is 1x Windows 7 Ultimate install DVD, Manuals and I had a product key in mine although some other people I have hear d of not having in theirs.. I don't know why?

Installation of Windows 7...For my installation of windows 7 I personally backed up all my data on windows vista my previous operating system, and then I for my dell computers installed a fresh install of windows 7. I did this by hitting F12 at the boot up sequence and changed my boot sequence to boot from disc. This brought up a message "Press any key to boot from disc". This automatically brought me to install windows 7, The installation was very easy to do so. You can install windows 7 by doing an update from your old operating system and this keeps all your documents and programs but I wanted to install a fresh install to make sure there wasn't any virus's on my new operating system. For a fresh install in the booting of the computer on most dell computers you hit F12 but this varies by the make of your computer e.g. Acer, HP, Packard bell etc.

Features of Windows 7...There are many newer and easier features in windows 7 compared to windows vista. Some including that it is easier for windows 7 ultimate users to install "XP Mode" on your PC.XP mode is a virtual machine of Windows XP for users that want to run XP on their machines alongside Windows 7. XP mode is free and easy to install for users that run windows 7 ultimate as I know as a friend of mine has windows 7 professional but they couldn't install it as it brought up a message stating that this feature can only be installed on windows 7 ultimate. But for windows 7 business users you may be able to install this. There are other ways for other windows 7 users to install windows XP on a virtual machine if you have Windows XP software by downloading virtual machine from Microsoft. Some other features include that the taskbar is easier to use than windows vista and more importantly users have the ability to use Aero which lets users put two windows equally side by side. This can be done by dragging the window to the top ends of the screen and it will show an outline of where the window will be placed. Other features include that on the taskbar when more than one program is opened it is easier to choose the window you are looking for example if I have two tabs open in Internet explorer when I place my cursor over the internet explorer icon two previews come above the programs icon on the taskbar which I then click on, this is a new feature as to older versions of windows when two or more tabs in a programme is opened there would be two programmes icons on your taskbar. Also in windows 7 most software that was released before the windows 7 release e.g. software for windows XP or Vista. Will run on your windows 7 which means you don't have to worry about any software not working on your new operating system. Overall there are many features of windows 7 which I couldn't explain here as they mostly are similar to previous versions of windows but are made better easier to use.

Overall...Windows 7 Ultimate in my opinion is the best operating system out there for home users at the present moment, it is much easier to use than previous windows operating systems. It is easy to run, easy to install and easy to install any updates or missing software as most of it does this automatically in windows update. The Operating system itself reminds me of windows XP as it is such a great operating system to run just like Windows XP when it was released. I have been running windows since DOS and personally I think this is Microsoft's best version unlike when vista came out I gave Windows XP I higher rating. The package cost me a £210 around 2 or 3 months after it came although mostly every PC is now sold with windows 7 unless you are buying a Macintosh which even can install windows 7 by using boot camp. But for users looking to upgrade but are unsure if it is a good enough operating system I would fully recommend any one to upgrade or buy a computer with this operating system on it. I personally use a computer a lot throughout the week and windows 7 has made my daily usage a lot easier to use the computer with its speed and features it offers to the user. Overall rating 9/10 cause nothings 100% perfect but this operating system in my opinion is 99% perfect I haven't had any problems with it and I have been running it nearly a year now. Recommend to anyone looking a new fast, easy to use, productive operating system.

Advantages

Disadvantages

A brilliant iteration of Windows from Microsoft

Now that we have stopped arguing over who's darned idea it was, I feel compelled to write a review for Microsoft's latest operating system, specifically the Ultimate edition.

Microsoft's previous operating system effort left a lot to be desired, Windows Vista was crippled in many ways. Performance lacked, slow copying of files, overuse of RAM and CPU and a downright drop in gaming frame-rates. I'm happy to announce that with this version of Windows, many of the issues that plagued its predecessor have been greatly overwhelmed.

==Performance==

Performance was one of the big problems with Windows Vista, people found that their newly bought computers ere stuttering, stalling, error producing messes. This resulted in many people switching back to Vista's predecessor, Windows XP. For a while, there were doubts on whether Windows 7 could live up to its massive expectations.

It did. Windows 7 is by far one of the best performing operating systems I have recently used, apart from the archaic Windows XP, which is lacking many features that users of computers may want to see. From installation, only six hundred and thirty two megabytes of RAM were used. That is approximately 25% of my overall RAM. Vista started off using 32% of my RAM.An improvement from the word 'go' it seems: I was happy to find out later that everyday tasks had been greatly streamlined by Microsoft's latest efforts. Booting applications was now near instantaneous and gaming became a greatly pleasurable experience, with Battlefield: Bad Company 2 boasting an extra sixteen frames per second from the previous iteration of Windows.

These are all very important factors, and performance is one of the things that people really want from an operating system, because after all, a computer is there to make your life easier, not bog it down with more problems. I was happy to notice that the performance in Windows 7 was brilliantly improved from its near-abysmal predecessor.

==Reliability==

Users of Windows Vista may be all too familiar with the Blue Screen of Death. A blue-screen, although rarely more than an annoying hinderence of your workflow, is generally regarded as one of the worst things to happen to your computer, as it stops everything abruptly and generally leaves any work that you were doing unsaved. Since I installed Windows 7 seven months ago, I have not had any problems with the Blue Screen of Death that were even remotely the fault of Windows 7.

Windows 7 is also more likely to do what you want, when you want it done without suggesting that you want to do something else. One of the issues that annoyed me with Windows Vista was the fact that the UAC or 'User Account Control' would nag me while I was trying to do things that were extremely important and needed to be done fast. Now, with Windows 7, its still here, but it has been tweaked to not treat you like an accident-prone child, a great relief in my opinion.

So less crashes, less blue-screening and less nagging than your average operating system, I was incredibly glad that these fixes were implemented, as it makes Windows 7 more of a pleasure to use than Vista, which by the end of its lifespan (about two weeks) was giving me severe grief (I switched back to Windows XP).

==Is it pretty?==

Yes, yes it is. Windows 7 features once again the Aero system that was in Windows Vista, but it has been highly optimised so that it no longer has a detrimental effect on the performance of three dimensional applications and the use of the computer as a whole.

There is no a task bar along the bottom (which is referred to as a Superbar) where items are laid out for your favourite applications and then stacked on top of each other so that you can hover over the application that you want and select the window from within that application. Not only does this free up additional screen space, it also makes the user interface more intuitive. Sure, when you first try it, it may feel like an annoying gimmick, but after time - you become considerably more used to it than before and then it becomes something that you want to see in every operating system.

The swishing of windows also appears quite good as well, windows float down to the bottom of the screen when minimized, fluently maximise to the screens vast expand when maximised and quickly swipe away when closed. It's a very pretty operating system, and even if you don't like all the effects, it can all be turned off to look like previous iterations of Windows in aid of performance or personal preference.

==What features are there?==

Microsoft have done what they usually do and have included many different applications and things that may be useful to the users of their operating system. Windows 7 includes a movie production application, a picture viewer, a basic picture editing application, instant messaging software and an internet browser.

The movie making application, Windows Movie Maker, was poor in my opinion. It lacked more advanced options and generally crashes a lot. The exporting of movies was also a downside, as you cannot export in any high-definition resolutions, which doesn't compare well to the Apple alternative iMovie. That's not to say that Windows Movie Maker is entirely bad. It contains a reasonable amount of transitions and effects, especially considering that the application is free.

The picture viewing application hasn't changed an awful lot since the release of Windows XP. It does what you expect it to do, it shows picture that you tell it to open, as well as some mild photo-correcting tools - nothing major, but you can do Red Eye Removal and correct some Contrasting issues on your photograph, a nice addition to a software meant for just viewing photographs.

Now that I am getting to it, I am wondering whether or not I should have called Paint an image editing program. It doesn't have anything to do with transparency, has no filtering options and cannot change lightness, hue or saturation. There is no anti-aliasing on the lines that it has created, and there is very little that has changed from its XP iteration that the Ribbon interface that Microsoft is now sporting on their latest versions of Microsoft Office. It looks nice, but in practise there is nothing new and nothing particularly useful here, apart from maybe a child that wishes to draw something. I'd much recommend free editing alternatives such as 'Paint.NET' or 'The Gimp'.

The instant messaging application, Windows Live Messenger, is perhaps one of the most widely used applications bundled with Windows. It allows you to communicate live with other people (and their email addresses) on your 'buddies' list. There is video communication, voice communication, file transfer and a range of emoticons and theme options. These are all very well, but I found the video communication to be a little bit dodgy, the emoticons to get extremely annoying after a short while and the voice communication a little hazy and stutter-y. Not really a problem though, because nobody is forcing you to use options that you don't want to see, and they can all be easily declined or turned off.

Perhaps the application that comes with Windows that I dislike the most is Microsoft Internet Explorer - a web browser that has been featured with Windows for as long as I can remember. There is a reason that that this is my least liked browser, and that is that it is created in such a way that it feels unresponsive, it loads webpages slower than all of its competitors, has ActiveX Controls which could in turn lead to a malware infection and is generally unsecure with its phishing warnings and data protection. The only use I had found for Internet Explorer was to download Mozilla Firefox.

While the applications that came with the operating system may be a little dumb-founded, it was still a redeeming touch for Microsoft to include them.

==Conclusion==

This is essentially Windows Vista, but everything in it has been drastically improved. Old problems are now nowhere to be found, games run smoother, applications boot and load faster and file transfers are like lightening compared to previous iterations of Windows.

I give Windows 7 five out of a possible five stars, because after all, Windows 7 was my idea.

Comments

Advantages

Disadvantages

Definitely Worth the Upgrade, no real annoyances

My Laptop came with Windows 7 Home Premium, but I decided to upgrade to Ultimate for the Remote Desktop, and the network backup, and even though these are minor things it is still worth it.

Windows Vista was, for most people, a bit of a disappointment, but to be honest I didn't have any problems with it. But anyway, it will make most computer run much faster. Although I can't directly compare it as I don't have this laptop running XP, but it seems that programs crash much fewer times, and it will also start up much quicker.

The interface as well is nicer than Windows Vista, and a massive step up from XP. The Aero peek feature, where you have a preview of the window when you mouse over it, is a welcome improvement, along with the bottom right button that lets you minimise all the windows at once quickly.

As I have mentioned the Remote Desktop feature is very useful over the Home Network, as when I want to work on a larger screen, I can just log on via my iMac and open office, turning my laptop into a dumb machine.

The Backup feature isn't the most comprehensive, and I might find myself investing in a better one, but it's decent for one bundled with an operating system.

I would strongly recommend that if your computer can support the upgrade from XP or Vista, that you do upgrade as Windows 7 is a much more stable platform, and you'll be able to run XP programs with Ultimate's XP Mode, but not all Computers will be able to support the upgrade.

Comments

Advantages

Reliability

Disadvantages

Easily the best OS i have used

Windows is by far the leading operating system available, outselling its rivals such as Mac and Linux by miles.

Windows 7 is the latest release after the disappointment of Vista.They say its faster and easier to use than Vista and has a new look to it with loads of different features.It doesn't disappoint.Since I have been using Windows 7, it has never crashed on me, sure it has frozen a couple of times but always sorts itself out after a few seconds.It looks amazing as well. They have stuck to the design of Vista but they have improved on it and made it look so much better, for example the task bar.

Some of the new functions they have added are pretty useful, like the snap tool.This is where you drag an undocked window to one side of the screen and drag another to the other side of the screen and it will snap them to the task bar and size the 2 windows so they can both be seen.Another one is the minimise tool.This is if you have many different windows open at the same time. You shake the window that is open and all the other windows minimise which is very useful.

I have only been using this for about a month so I don't know everything about the operating system but from what I have seen so far, it is the best operating system I have ever used and would recommend it to anyone.

Comments

Advantages

Reliability

Disadvantages

A great OS all round

I've now been running Windows 7 since the 6th of August when it came out on TechNet and before that i was testing the beta a RC of Windows and I've been very impressed with its and to put it basically its vista done right from the start and without the longhorn fiasco.The first impression i got of Windows 7 was that it was fast a clean with its UI and start menu design i was very impressed from the presentation even at the beta stages and now after using the final RTM (Release to Manufacturing) and i can say without a doubt that it far sepsis vista.

The Install

The installation took 20 minutes in all from DVD, everything went hunky-dory on both my desktop and laptop i was very impressed with the laptop installation as all my drives were install with vista i had to install my fingerprint reader drivers myself with windows 7 nothing had to be done but i did install the lasts Realtek HD drivers and Ati drivers. The boot time was a tad fast then vista after a clean install and during boot you are shown an lovely animation of the windows flag a far more aesthetically pleasing view then the boring scrolling bar you would see in Windows Vista .

Some new features of Windows 7

Aero Snap

When you Press WINDOWS KEY + LEFT it will snap the window to the left side of the screen and if you press WINDOWS KEY + RIGHT it will snap the window to the right side of the screen and WINDOWS KEY + UP to maximise the window, you can also drag the window to the sides of the screen for the same effect, this feature is great I've used it just about every day it's such a small thing but so useful and i find if I'm ever on a Vista or XP machine and drag a window to the left side of the screen expecting something to happen and when i realise how much i miss it.

Windows Gadgets

Windows Gadgets replaces the old Windows Sidebar that comes in Windows Vista and would give you a sidebar to house gadgets in and it was pretty good but it would eat up a fair bit of your desktop and with Windows Gadgets this is no longer the case, you can just place your gadgets anywhere on your desktop. Sadly Microsoft only added one new gadget to windows 7 and that's the Media Center and they left out the Stocks gadget, i don't use either of them but i think it would have been nice if Microsoft included some more to ship with. But overall it's a great improvement over Windows Sidebar.

Aero Peek

It does what it says it allows you to "peek" at your desktop windows, with Aero Peek you can ether preview your desktop in which you move your mouse to the bottom left of the taskbar and hover over the "show desktop" pane and it will be shown a see-through outline of all your windows i find this every useful to view desktop gadgets like the weather gadget. This other option is the full screen window preview in which you hover your mouse over a taskbar button and your see open applications show in thumbnails move your mouse over one of these to see the full preview the window in full this will show you the main window you want to see and the outlines of the other windows behind it.

The Taskbar

Microsoft for the first time since Windows 95 have redesigned the taskbar, it has been made a bit thicker and now groups icons by applications which makes your workspace far less cluttered and one of the new elements i do like very much is the new Inline progress bars that show you the progress of your copying inside the icon, tray notification area has been upgraded and much tidier. I think for some users it might take some time to get use to the redesign but i think most will love it others maybe not but don't fear you can change the behaviour to act like windows vista's taskbar if you so choose.

Touch

Windows 7 has been made with touch devises like new touchscreens and tablets in mind and it takes full advantage of it and has tool built in to make the best use of touch devises sadly i don't have any form of touch device to test but I'm look forward to trying out one if i can get my hands on a touch screen at some point

If you've been using Windows XP and avoided Vista due to the bad press this is the upgrade you've been waiting for and if your using Windows vista i highly recommend you upgrade to Windows 7 you won't regret it i promise you.

Comments

Advantages

Reliability

Disadvantages

GREAT for an upgrade windows finally cracked it

Now since i built my computer the windows 7 RC came out at the same time i decided to put it on, downloading took a long time but it was more than worth it, i wanted to see how it ran the new OS that everyone would want, and if they don't they should after my review!Aplications:it comes with a few more goodies, like the powershell and backwards compatability also the GUI is a lot better, and a lot faster than vista, the other good part is the speed, it is faster than vista and more like a pimped XP. the windows defender is good, and so is the better control panel, it is now a 1 click uninstall, easy peasy not taking 5 minutes per one.The bad thing i have noticed on mine is i kept getting a blue screen everytime i connected my old phone the motorola slvr L6 , i couldn't see the problem so instead i decided to just use my phone on my laptop.Also when you save it is that quick you can hardly tell, so sometimes it leaves you wondering if you saved it at all.

over all i would recommend this as an upgrade and if you like a nice GUI OS, this would be perfect

Comments

Advantages

Reliability

Disadvantages

A great OS really worth upgrading to!!!

I'm quite fortunate to have a copy the Retail Windows 7 Ultimate 2 months before the release date due to msdn subscription. My review is based on personal experience and preferance and may not be the same opinion as everyone else.

Firstly, the installation took just over 25 minutes, an improvement on Vista. Boot time is very slightly slower but shutdown is almost instant - 5 seconds!!

After installing Windows 7 Ultimate, I decided to explore some of the new features and changes before attempting any software installations. The graphics seemed extremely impressive, but I was viewing it on a 42" HD TV, but still, this is the same set up I used Vista on and the visual aspect was nothing compared to 7.

A few things have moved around, like show desktop, there isn't a default sidebar and paint has had a major overhall!! The taskbar has turned into a Apple Dock....you can now 'Pin' programs to the taskbar for faster access. This is a direct copy of Apple OSX, but works very well. So well I've only used the start menu a few times.

Things seem a bit quicker than Vista, certain tasks require less memory and performance however the aero desktop is still very demanding. The performance rating now goes beyond 5.9, this is due to Windows now being able to make more use of more memory and faster processors.

Other items I use which have become more user friendly include remote desktop, the search function, network configuration and more. A large amount has remained the same which is a relief however some of the options like Swithc to Classic View in the Control Panel seems to have gone which I find very annoying.

Microsoft have managed to rid most the bugs via the release candidate however people will still complain that software won't work with it. This is a vendor issue as much as it is a Microsoft issue. All Vista software will work on Windows 7, but if it fails because it verifies it's a Vista install, that is the issue with the vendor not Microsoft.

e.g. software designed for all OS's will search for which OS it is and if iti isn't on the list it will fail, even though if it chose Vista it would work perfectly.

I personally think it's a great OS, a vast improvement on Vista and a pleasure to use....but just wait untill the new Apple OS comes out next month...

Comments

Advantages

Reliability

Disadvantages

A good, quick and easy to use operating system

When Windows Vista first got released, people thought that it looked nice, but ran very very slowly. Well, Windows 7 has fixed this; it looks just as nice, with extra features and also runs as smooth as Windows XP. Many people have not even attempted to change to Vista, as it would render their computers useless. Windows 7 can run on pretty much any computer with any set up, including notebooks, eg. Asus EEE!

The first change you notice after installing windows 7, is that the taskbar has changed. The quick launch section has disappeared (there is still a show desktop button) and each program is depicted as a single icon. For each instace of a single program, e.g. multiple firefox windows, they are grouped with this single icon. This allows you to open lots and lots of programs, and your taskbar not getting cluttered.

The second change you notice from Windows Vista, is the speed difference. No random jerkyness or deciding it does not want to open programs straight away. Microsoft have now even allowed the user to uninstall Microsoft programs they do not want; i.e internet Explorer, Windows media player etc.

Unlike, Windows Vista, there is no sidebar. Instead, this is replaced by the ability to just drag gadgets straight to the desktop.

A problem I have found with both Windows Vista and Windows 7 is that UAC (User account control) is on by default. This was easily turned off in Windows Vista, but is a bit more hidden to turn off in Windows 7; but it can be done.

I have read there have been a lot of compatibility issues with Windows 7, but me personally, I have not had any. I have not encountered one program so far, that ran on Windows Vista, but does not work on Windows 7.

If you did not want to upgrade to Vista because you were worried of it being slow, definately get Windows 7 instead! If you are on Windows Vista, definately upgrade to Wndows 7 as it is well worth the money.

NB. I am reviewing this from my experience with the newest Beta version of Windows 7; 7600 build. This is going to be the retail version that is being sold.

Comments

Advantages

Disadvantages

Great OS but still has far to go to be fully compatible

I have to point out that I've only tried RC1 as I don't have an RTM copy.

So Windows 7, the operating system that Windows Vista was supposed to be (or so the critics say). When I installed the release candidate of this OS I was surprised at how good it was in terms of stability, looks and loading up time especially compared to Vista. Unfortunately not as fast as XP it was a hell of a lot better than Vista but Microsoft have kept some of the great features of Vista improving them and adding some even better ones.With Vista such a disappointment when it was released back in late 2006 that I was considering the switch to Linux or even splashing out on a Mac. Alas neither of my alternatives were very gamer friendly and I was forced to downgrade to XP but I kept Vista on lappy.So Windows 7 has suffered from some compatibility issues especially with games, COD4 installs and runs fine but Toca Race Driver 3 and Far Cry 2 didn't seem to want to install which was depressing and hence I reinstalled XP and gave up on Windows 7.

Also I didn't like the fact that the file explorer would randomly stop responding for no reason at all plus several other programs such as IE8. I am still impressed with Windows 7 it's just I won't be pre-ordering it nor will I be buying it anytime soon. I would though be happy to install it on a completely new build or if it came on a new laptop I wouldn't be sad heartened or downgrade because I like some of the features of Windows 7 and it's a hell of a lot better than Vista.

Overall then I would recommend this OS and pre-order if you want to but it still has a way to go compatibility wise mainly due to its problem with games and some hardware (sound in my case).

Comments

Advantages

Reliability

Disadvantages

Recommended

Windows Vista was meant to be the fantastic new operating system that everybody would want. Futuristic, cool, and faster than its predecessor Windows XP. Unfortunately it has not turned out quite the way Microsoft seem to have imagined it would be. It was an epic failure for many people, randomly ending programs for no good reason, picking up viruses, and constantly running slow. I think that the many faults of Windows Vista have prompted the early release of Windows 7, which is being introduced just two years after Vista's poor release.

The main objective of Windows 7 as the new Microsoft operating system is to cover the basics that Vista failed so badly at, while trying to keep a futuristic look, that looks as good as rival operating systems, such as Apple's OS X.

The main problem with Vista was its slow and clunky running speeds, opening a web page on a good laptop could take 10 seconds, when XP could do it with no trouble in no more than about 1 or 2 seconds. In my experience of Windows 7, and this is only with the beta version, web pages opened up faster than in XP, and certainly much quicker than in Vista, other aspects of the system also ran much faster, I could actually get a high graphics game to run at about 20fps on my laptop, as opposed to about 5fps on it when using Vista. I am pleased with the upgrades that Microsoft has bought to Windows 7 here, it runs much faster and provides a better user experience.

The appearance and ease-of-use of the system is always something that must be addressed. While Vista looked shiny on the outside, there were some deep flaws in the design that actually make the interface very clunky, and tricky to use. It could take 30 seconds just for the start bar to pop up, deeply annoying, but there are no problems like this in Windows 7. Everything is much more simplistic about the interface and as a result everything is easier to use. The icons are bigger, there is no stupid side bar, and there are many other things that make the interface better than the one used in Windows Vista.

Viruses have always been a massive issue with the Windows operating systems, the first version of XP before it had service packs added used to get them all the time. And Vista was much worse, everyone seems to get Vista viruses these days, programs not working or closing down because of the annoying habit in Vista to find them out of nowhere. But in my experience of Windows 7, there have been no such problems, the viruses seem to have stayed well clear of machine. I am not sure if this is the same with the other beta testers, or if it will prove so when the final version is released, but in my experience no viruses have been contracted and the system has remained clean and easy to use.

With Windows 7, I find it is the little things that just make it a much better experience. A good example would be the wireless network finder, by clicking on the icon in the bottom right of the screen for wireless activity, a box will pop up, showing each available network, how good the signal strength is, and how fast it is running. It also has the features that XP had that allow it to automatically repair a poor network connection, the Vista version of it never worked, but this one does. It is just small things like this, made so much easier in Windows 7, that make it a winning operating system. I wholeheartedly recommend this system to anyone running on a Windows machine, it can currently be pre-ordered on Amazon for about £70, which is great value.

Comments

Advantages

Disadvantages

If you want a good up and coming OS this is the one for you, but it might be worth waiting.

Now for as long as I can remember, I've always tended to lean towards microsoft for my computing needs. Its not that mac's aren't good, its just windows tends to cater more for the gamers amongst us =D

Windows 7 was a breath of fresh air when I first installed it on my pc. After booting it up I noticed it was surprisingly faster than a fresh reinstall of vista ultimate on my other harddrive.

From the looks of things microsoft have taken the aero concept from vista and given it a whole new look and I can tell you it looks great! They've also added a sort of icon system to the taskbar, sort of like what mac's have, and I find this very helpful as it means that you can have more programs on the same taskbar. It also looks and feels nicer.

Microsoft have been working with Nvidia, the graphics card makers for some time now in fine tuning the drivers for nvidia cards on win7. I personally have a 8800gt 512mb and I found that the drivers for it were fully compatible with my card. After sampling a few games I experienced no problems and it was clear that win7 was designed to be fully compatible with the games that are compatible with vista. I also noticed that windows 7 was more like xp as it isnt as bloated as vista.

It is pleasing to see that Microsoft have taken out all the pre-installed rubbish they load with vista. Stuff like the windows meeting place and other things can be downloaded but don't come with the OS. This is good as it makes it more lightweight and thus faster!

The only complaint with it is that even though microsoft have tried their best to hammer out all the compatibility issues that vista had, a lot of software are still not ready to work on win7 and until this gets sorted out you might find yourself stuck with an OS that doesnt support some vital programs.

To summarise, windows 7 will be a great up and coming OS and is definately worth the time to check it out. But, until more programs are supported by win7 then I'd say to resist the urges to buy it and wait!

Comments

Advantages

Reliability

Disadvantages

I would choose to use this over any other Windows OS, and so should you!

I have never liked any Windows OS, and have always chosen to use Mac whenever possible. I don't like the look or feel of WIndows XP, and while it works well enough, doesn't perform nearly as well as Mac. Windows Vista looks a lot better than XP, but performs absolutely terribly - so badly that I had to downgrade back to XP, even on a laptop with very good specs.

I've always run Windows using Boot Camp on a separate partition of the hard drive on my Apple Macbook. So, I could risk trying a new Operating System - if something went wrong, I'd still be able to use Mac. As soon as I could get hold of a copy in Windows 7, I got rid of XP and installed the new OS instead. It was extremely easy to install, a task which took around half an hour. After about 15 minutes of using it, I was in love with the Windows 7!Contrary to any previous installation of Windows I've used, this one barely ever crashes, runs smoothly almost all the time, and doesn't give me a cramped/claustrophobic feeling every time I use it. It also looks amazing. Sure, the GUI (Graphical User Interface) is pretty much the same as Vista, but it does have a few subtle differences that make it a lot better, such as the task bar, which seems to be a little bit more like the Dock from Apple's Mac OS.Compatibility issues that existed in Windows Vista with hardware and software I've tried are fine with Windows 7, it seems that Microsoft have just perfected Vista and created an OS that has improved on the looks of Vista and on the functionality of any of their previous Operating Systems.

I have only used the Beta version of Windows 7 so far (Build 7022 I believe), and even incomplete, this Operating System is by far the best piece of software Microsoft have ever created.I'll even go as far as saying that Windows 7 is actually comparable to Mac OS X! This is something that I thought I would never say about any version of Windows, but I even choose to use it sometimes when it's not absolutely necessary - the feel of it is 100 times better than that of Vista or XP!

Comments

Advantages

Reliability

Disadvantages

Get hold of Home Premium during pre-order period for only £50! Any more is too much

Now, not many people liked Vista. Personally, I've always loved Vista, but it did have its share of compatibility issues, leaving me without Internet access for eight weeks. Torture! But Vista was a brand new operating system, the first to be released since XP in 2001 and people seem to find it difficult to move on.

I hope that people now feel more secure to move on to Windows 7. Windows 7 is not really a brand new operating system, more of a Vista 2. But, while it is superficially very similar, Microsoft have made changes where they matter, refining the OS at the core.

I've tried Windows 7 on a separate partition and my first impression was that it is much faster than Vista, while still looking beautiful. Bear in mind that Microsoft designed this new OS with lower-end systems in mind after people complained about Vista's performance. People even claim that it runs smoothly on netbooks!

The taskbar is much improved. As well as Vista's fantastic start menu with search, the search is improved as a result of categories. You can move windows around on the taskbar, preview Windows by hovering over one of the tabs using AeroPeek and easily choose which notification area icons to show or hide.

The Control Panel is better thought out, especially with a more comprehensive Action Center instead of the Security Center debuted in XP and the boot/shutdown times are much quicker, too.

Installation is painless. It required limited user intervention and was done within 30 minutes.